Retrospect When one talks about Silk Road it conjures up visions of traders and caravans travelling from Occident to the Orient and vice versa. There have been many versions of silk roads which have been used by both traders and invaders for ages. These silk roads connected many cultures and civilizations and these exchanges were largely mutually beneficial. For instance, along with the trade Buddhist religion spread from India to Afghanistan and then to Central Asia, and beyond to China along one of the many silk roads/routes.